Norris cool on F1 title hopes ahead of Italian GP

Lando Norris played down his chances of pipping Max Verstappen to the Formula One drivers’ title on Thursday even though the world champion’s unbeatable aura has faded heading into the Italian Grand Prix.

McLaren driver Norris trails Verstappen by 70 points with nine races remaining after finishing nearly 23 seconds ahead of the three-time F1 king in the Dutch GP last weekend.

But asked how much his confidence had been boosted by the crushing win in Zandvoort, a laid back Norris said: “not a lot”.

“For me a win is incredible, and is genuinely one of best feelings you can have, because this is what I dreamed of, what I always wanted to achieve … But I do not think of the championship at all,” he said.

“The only thing I care about now is this weekend. I couldn’t care less about next weekend or the weekend after, it’s just want can I do today, what can I do tomorrow, what can I do Saturday… That’s my process.”

Norris has finished on the podium nine times this season, winning twice.  After a series of recent upgrades, the car McLaren have provided for him and teammate Oscar Piastri looks the best on the grid.

McLaren have a legitimate shot at winning the constructors’ championship for the first time since 1998 as they sit just 30 points behind Verstappen’s team Red Bull.

“It gives the team a good amount of confidence and it’s always a little bit of a boost but it doesn’t change your feeling,” said Norris.

“We’re pushing hard every weekend, of course. Our goal is to catch them in both, especially on the constructors side which is much more doable than on the drivers’ side.”

Verstappen insisted that winning a fourth straight F1 drivers’ crown “is not going to change my life”, as he looks over his shoulder at Norris.

‘Not in my hands’

The 26-year-old Dutchman looked certain to continue his dominance of the sport when he won the Spanish GP back in June, but no wins and just two podium finishes in the last five races have allowed doubts to creep in.

“Would I like to win it? Yes, of course… it’s not in my hands with the performance of the car because I just try to do the best I can, try to give feedback, try to make it faster. If that’s going to be enough to the end of the year, I don’t know,” Verstappen told reporters.

“I also know that, you know, a season like we had last year is very unrealistic. But did I expect it to be like this? Not really.”

Lewis Hamilton is a Ferrari driver in waiting ahead of his move to the Scuderia next year, and the seven-time world champion said coming to Monza “definitely does feel a little bit different”.

“I don’t know what to expect. If I’m honest, the last couple of years, I mean over the last few years, I’ve had a very warm welcome,” said Hamilton.

“There was one time when we were really fighting against Ferrari, I can’t remember what year that was, But even then, people were positive. There was never any negativity.”